Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-04-22
CROOKED CLARK.
The Story of the Truckee Clerks Finan-
cial Operations.

cial Operations.
TRUcKEE, April 21st-Truckee has been
excited all day over the capture and arrest
of A. p. Clark, at Victoria, on a charge of
forgery, as announced in the daily press OF
yesterday. Mr.. McGlashan, the attorney
who has conducted the affair, gives the
facts as follows: During the past year Mr.
Clark occupied position as confidential
clerk and business manager for Ellie Ellen
one of Truckee's largest mill owners,
who, being confined to his room
by paralysis, trusted implicitly in
Clark, confiding to him large sums
of money. Clark was also given a power
of attorney. intended to be special one to
transact a transfer of land with Marlette &
Folsom, but it appears it was made a gem
eral power of attorney. On the 7th of last
month Clark went to San Francisco, and
few days afterwards Mr.. Ellen's safe keys
and one of his bank-books were sent by
variety actress, named frankie Whit
combe, with whom Clark had been long
Gt is said) infatuated. Suspicion was
aroused, and inquiry elicted the
fact that Clark had sailed for
Seattle on the 1Ith of March.
An expert was brought from San Francisco
to open the safe, which he readily did by
using the old combination Clark never
from the safe was Mr.. Elen's will, former
will, carefully sealed, occupying its place
As Clark had absolute control of Mr..
Ellens money. it was first supposed that
he had embeZzled his EMPLOYERS entire
fortune. Statements received from a mum
Der of banks, however, showed that they
contained large deposits to Mr.. Ellen's
credit.
A check was drawn March "a on the
Bank of California for S31S so to paw some
small bills around town. Clark had in
serted the word sixty" and the figure
g 3 " in the body of the check. and on the
10th day of March had drawn S6,31S. On
the 1st of April Mr.. Ellen received a letter
from Clark, at Victoria, containing many
insulting. and abusive remarks concerning
Mr.. Ellen and members of his family and
declared that the writer had got even with
them. One expression was: You can
howl as much as you please; am safe on
British soil, and you can't touch me-
Clark also wrote that he intended to sail
from Victoria on the following day. Mr.
Ellen promptly sent an attorney, G. F.
McGlashan, TO San Francisco. to engage a
detective to follow Clark, and if the entire
world had to be searched over it was de-
termined to catch him. Harry n. Morse
was engaged to prosecute the search. In
less than six hours after receiving the case,
Mr.. Morse had discovered that Miss
frankie Whitcombe had sailed for Vic
toria on the 18th of March. She told a friend
before leaving that she had sucker on
string" who had got away with
seven thousand dollars from a Truckee
mill-owner and had gone to Victoria; that
he had sent her $780, and she was going to
join him. Jerome Deasy, who became ac-
quainted with Clark last summer in
Truckee, sailed on the 18th for Victoria
and on Tuesday night arrested him. The
crime of forgery, with which he is charged,
is an extraditable offense. and Mr. Clark
will be brought to Truckee for examina-
tion